The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1887-11-21
LAW AND ANARCHY.
Surprising Ignorance shown as TO thu
Nature of an Anarchist.

Ignorance SnoNh us W
Nature of an Anarchist.
Recent events have shown that there is
considerable number OF amiable and well
meaning persons In this country who are OPP
posed to executing justice according to Law
upon the Chicago anarchists III these remon
strants opposed the execution OF the sentence
in these cases because they oppose the iniic
tion Of capital punishment in any case, there
would be no occasion to argue with them. Blu
some Of them at least oppose 1t without hsv'
ing any scrupes about the death penalty, sim.
ply upon the score OF expedlency They
believe that anarchy will prosper by pcrsecu
ton, as various religious and political heresiei
have been known to do, and they appear ts
maintain that nobody should be sentenced te
death for the murder OF the policeman In Chi
cago except the man who actually threw the
bomb. AS there is some doubt about the
identity OF this person, to put this rccommen'
dation into practice would be to commute the
sentence OF all the persons appointed to dlt
this month in expiation OF the murder.
Those who hold this view show singular
ignorance OF the nature Of an anarchist They
discuss his case as If he were the propagation
beniiicence Of which he firmly believed. II
requires extreme ignorance as well as ex
IRENE innocence to take this view OF him.
Anybody who has paid any attention to
the writings or speeches Of actual anarchists
know that their principle" is nothing In
the world but hatred and envy Of those
who are richer than themselves Whctchei
like Spies and Most are actuatcd by this senti'
ment alone for their own part, and appeal to thii
sentiment alone In others. There are OF course
among the men who have failed In every com
munity men who envy other men for having
succeeded. So long as a man Is ashamed OF
this feeling and conceals 1t he may be goot
citizen Notwithstanding that he entertains 1t.
When he gives vent to 1t In words he Is apt to
get himself disiked and despised. When he
translates 1t into action he brings himself
within the province OF the criminals who avow
and act upon the sentiment Of the anachists,
and take malicious satisfaction, quite apart
from the gain Of the operation, In breaking
into the strong boxes or picking the pockets
of men who have accumulated money by
host industry. A criminal In whom envy is Sc
much stronger than avarce that he will de-
stroy property and take life wantonly and
without expecting TO derive any personal
benefit from robbery or murder is an anarchist.
Evidently he is quite as detestable as any
other robbcr or murderer, and even more dan
gerous. To try to argue envy out OF man
who is ready to XIII, burn and destroy merely
from envy is as absurd as TO try moral suasion
on a rabld dog or to ask him for the arguments
by which he justifes himself In biting people.
Yet this is what the people would like to have
us do who deprecate the hanging OF the
anarchist as In some sort persecution OF
men on account OF their opinions. They know
that they themselves would not 60 about set
ting fire TO buildings and killing policemen
except in vindication OF some sort OF philo'
sophy, and they assume that there Is prln.
ciple and philosophy behind the murders and
outrages OF the anarchists. That the anarch-
lists hate all orderly and well-to-do people so
| passonately as to be willing to rob and muir
| der them for the sake OF gratifying that
hatred is obvious to everybody who has read
| their speeches or their writings. IL Is credit
able to tho hearts, II not to the heads, OF
of those who deprecate Furnishing anarchists
as other criminals are punished Tor ike OF
lenses that to them such state OF mind 10
incredible.
The expediency Of Furnishing anarchist
murderers precisely as other murderers are
punished really needs no proof, but an inter
esting bit of testimony has just appeared In
its favor Ever since the verdict was con.
frmed by the supreme court OF Illinois there
have been protests against the execution OF
the sentence, and meetings have been called
to enter these protests. The contrast between
the mildness OF the language IN which these
protests have been couched and the ferocity
OF the language used by the anarchists before
the massacre shows the SOLDERING effect OF
sense OF legal responsibility. The latest piece
OF evidence Is a circular sent through the
postofllce OF Chicago, In which ''workingmen"
| are exhorted to rise in their might and pre-
vent the execution OF the law on the 18th OF
| November. 1t is intimated that "bombs and
| firearms will be effective in bringing about
| the rescue OF the prisoners, and altogether
| the circular is much the same sort OF per-
| Torrance that Spies and Most used to com.
| pose before II was brought to their notice
! that melting 10 crime Is itself crime. The
| difference Is that they used TO do IL without
any prelense OF secrecy, whereas now the
circular is issued with every prccautlon for
conceallng the identity Of the author The
same wholesale apprehension OF the law that
| prevented the writer from giving his advice
openly will prevent his readers from taking II
seriously. Nobody is likely to be aroused to
resist the police on an occasion which shows
the extreme dander OF that line Of conduct
| by a manifesto issued by nobody from no.
| where IL the condemned anarchists should
manage to cheat the gallows, then we might
expect the anarchist agitators to resume their
| former cheerful bearing and to advocate riot
and murder openly instead Of secretly, but OF
that there is little danger.-ftw York Times.